


Nameless Lady Soul

by Matryoshkah



Category: Natsume Yuujinchou | Natsume's Book of Friends, xxxHoLic
Genre: Ayakashi, Crossover, Gen, Mystery
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-01
Updated: 2019-10-01
Packaged: 2020-11-08 20:30:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,954
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20841566
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Matryoshkah/pseuds/Matryoshkah
Summary: Just when Watanuki is having trouble with a client’s wish, is visited by an old Yuuko’s friend and a kid with a curious and powerful object.





	Nameless Lady Soul

"There's a woman out there." Said Doumeki, pouring sake into a cup.

“It's a ghost. It's been there since last week.” Watanuki replied, his gaze missing among the trees in the garden. “She came for a wish.”

“And? Did you give it to her?”

Watanuki was silent as he exhaled the smoke from his pipe. There was no need to respond. Evidently, if that desolate ghost was still there, it was because her wish had not yet been fulfilled.

However, the woman had already paid. And it was time for Watanuki to help her grant his wish. But he had a little problem about that.

"Hey." He heard Doumeki's voice after a long period of absolute silence. "What are you making for dinner tonight?”

“Tch. That’s all you’re always thinking about. Eat.” He protested, getting up, walking into the store. “Well ... the food has to wait, because we have visitors.”

As if he had prophesied, the front door bell rang. New customers had arrived at the store.

“Oh. Shall I accompany you?” Doumeki asked, watching how Watanuki fixed the sleeves of the detailed kimono while shaking his head.

"It's not necessary, this will be quick."

The shop was as desolate as ever, but the absolute cleanliness of each corner undoubtedly indicated that someone lived there and, certainly, it was a place that had not been forgotten in the labyrinth of time.

In the lobby was a blond boy who didn’t exceed sixteen, in the company of an exotic cat whose furtive and scrupulous gaze proved how suspicious he was.

"Excuse me, is there anyone?" The client walked hesitantly, feeling as if he were entering into a place that would be better not to enter. However, nothing set him back. There was something attractive about that store that seduced him to keep going.

Suddenly, two creatures emerged from nowhere, one with an enigmatic pink hair and childlike smile, and the other one with blue hair and playful look. Both of them smiled with confidence, as if they had already done the same ritual thousands of times before, and singing almost in perfect unison, they greeted the two new clients:

"Welcome~, come in!"

The charming voice made a bizarre contrast with the melancholic interior, and the boy couldn’t help but feeling fascinated by this.

“It's a very attractive place.” He said, walking in with more confidence, contrasting his cat friend, who was still reluctant to lower his guard “By the way, is this a store?”

“Something like that” The male voice caught the attention of the two clients. “It is a shop where wishes are granted in exchange of a price proportional to it, and if you are here, you must have one.” Explained the host, who, with refined pipe and a red kimono with black chrysanthemums, received their new guests and probably customers.

The refined gestures and the confident and seductive gaze of the owner were the triggers of the mistrust, because when the cat gave a quick scan, he moved the tail and gave off an aura of distrust.

He probably perceived something in him that his companion, the boy, was not able to detect.

“Um, I don't think I have any desire...” Said the boy thoughtfully, looking now at his cat. “But to grant wishes seems a wonderful job. Nyanko-sensei, you were right.”

"Of course, I was! Did you think I was lying to you?" Exclaimed, out of all prognosis, the cat with the boy. The pink-haired and blue-haired girls startled, but the owner didn’t flinch. “Your grandma brought me to this place. By the way, where is Yuuko?”

"Ah, " the owner reacted, asking his guests over sit at the table. "Are you friends of Yuuko- san?"

The cat, who apparently is named Nyanko-sensei, sat at the table after the hair-blue girl had piled some cushions on the chair. The boy followed him.

“Somehow” Said Nyanko-sensei in a tone of voice that amused the pink-haired girl. “You could say I came a couple of times with Natsume-san in the past.”

“Yuuko-san is no longer here.” Explained the owner. “Now I am the owner of the store, Kimihiro Watanuki.”

“I was wondering when The Dimensional Witch would leave this antiquated shop. “Said Nyanko-sensei as he drank the tea that hair-blue girl had put on the table. “Danm, I remember that she and Reiko always drank till they pass out.”

“Nyanko-sensei, please.” The boy scolded and bowed to the owner. “I'm sorry, Watanuki-san, this talkative cat often talks more than he should. By the way, my name is Natsume Takashi.

“Takashi-kun, huh?” Watanuki took a sip of tea, and then looked the Takashi’s bag. “So, you bring something interesting with you.”

The comment paid off: both Nyanko-sensei and Takashi opened their eyes and gave themselves discreet glances that caused grace in Watanuki.

“Takashi-kun, I bet you can see the creatures that go after that.” Watasuki pointed the bag with his pipe, and he unconsciously squeezed it, frowning just a little.

“Natsume, it's time to go off.” Announced Nyanko-sensei raising his voice. “Who I came to greet is no longer here, we have nothing else to do.”

“Wait, sensei.” Stopped the boy, staring into the eyes of the mysterious and eccentric shop owner. “Can you see them too?”

“Yeah.” Said Watanuki and smiled as if he had remembered an old joke. “Both you and I are the same.” He said, and pointed the bag again without breaking eye contact. “What you have in your bag, could you show it to me?”

"Don't do it, Natsume!" Exclaimed the cat. “He's going to steal it!”

“Shut up cat, I won’t take anything from anyone” said Watanuki, a little sick of the shrill voice of Nyanko-sensei. “I just want to check it out. I cannot take a valuable item without have given a wish in return.

"Well, if so..."Natsume wasn't completely sure, but he trusted his instincts. Watanuki didn't look like someone who was able to steal it. As he pulled out what appeared to be a notebook, a gesture of terror deformed Nyanko-sensei's face.

Watanuki took the notebook in his hands and instantly felt the great power of the object.

“Oh my, this is a relic.” He glanced the book and then returned it to the owner. “I had heard something about this book, but I didn't know if it really existed. You must cause panic in the other world.”

“A truly shame” Interrupted the cat now with an annoyed tone. “This kid is a total waste of time.”

“Nyanko-sensei, please be quiet, can you?” Watanuki-san.” As if remembering something important, Takashi took the book with both hands and hugged his chest assured. “What I have is not a wish, but a goal: to return the names written in this book to their owners. Is that the reason I constantly get stalked by yokai.”

“Did you know? With this book you can get a lot of power.” Clarified Watanuki. But the boy nodded. 

“I know.” He said and Watanuki smiled wistfully.

“You’re a very kind person. You remind me a little, wanting to help others. But, even if you have no a wish, if you could get into this store, it is because there is a reason.

"But... what could it be?" Thoughtfully, Takashi looked at his notebook.

Then, while finishing his black tea, Watanuki suddenly understand the meaning of them presence. And everything was so clear that it was impossible for Watanuki not to smile, pleased.

“Mokona.” He said, and a little black ball came out of the blue, appearing in the center of the table.

“Hai!” The thing exclaimed, and even though the two clients had probably already seen strange creatures throughout their lives, they could not help being surprised.

Watanuki whispered something to the black creature that named Mokona, and she flew out the window at an illogical speed.

A few minutes passed in which no word was heard, and immediately the ghost of a woman went through the closed door and slid down the floor, slowly and tragically, until she reached the threshold of the room. Her rotten hair was so tangled and dirty that his white, deformed face couldn’t be seen at all. With her low and pitiful voice, she let out whispered wails that mixed with sorrowed moans, and both hands, white and bony, emerged trembling from the sleeves of a worn and dirty dress that seemed to be from the last century and looked like used to be beautiful in that time.

"Oh, it's the woman we saw at the entrance." Takashi recalled without being affected.

"It's the soul of a nameless lady." Watanuki said getting up to guide the ghost lady to the table, he offered her tea.

“Thank you.” The woman whispered, accepting the cup.

“Takashi-kun, this woman has been waiting a long time for her wish to be granted.” Said Watanuki pointing to the woman. “Now I understand better what she meant by ‘she wanted to get his name back.'” 

Takashi opened his eyes, surprised, watching the woman in front of him with genuine kindness, and smiled, taking out his notebook.

"I understand, so your name is in the notebook, isn't it?" He asked kindly, and the woman, skeletal and translucent, raised her face showing the empty hollows where the eyes should be.

Takashi opened the book and placed it in the palms of his hands. He closed his eyes and made a brief ritual in which the pages passed quickly, until it stopped at a certain sheet. That was the name.

"Saya... is a beautiful name.” Watanuki said, touching the shoulder of the ghost named Saya.

"Thank you..." She whispered, and having the paper in her hands, her body mixed with the smoke of the pipe until it melted into the air, as if finally, after many years, the soul could have rested.

Now there were only three people left in the room.

"Luckily I wanted to come to this store before returning home.” Takashi got up from the table. “Otherwise that poor woman wouldn’t have gotten her name back."

“You're right.” Added Nyanko-sensei, imitating the boy. “It was a great causality.”

“The causalities do not exist in this world.” Watanuki smiled and then give a long drag on his pipe. “If you got here it was because it was inevitable.”

Those words didn’t originally belong to him, but he said them with such conviction that he had made it his own. 

“Listen, listen! Don't you want to stay and drink?” Mokona, the black creature appeared on the table with enthusiasm. “Today Domeki-kun brought good sake!”

"I'm sorry, I'm under-age." Indicated Takashi apologetically.

"Doesn’t matter how old you are, let’s fun!" Just said Mokona, which was interrupted by Watanuki throwing the table.

“Maru, Moro, go with Takashi-kun and the cat at the exit. “Said to the childlike creatures who responded affirmatively. “They have to leave before it gets dark, right?”

“It's true, we’ll lost the bus if we delay. “Recalled Takashi, packing the book in his bag. “See you soon, Watanuki-san.”

The owner waved off his guests without approaching the door.

Takashi bowed to Watanuki and stared at him for a moment. He wanted to say something, but he couldn't find the right words.

"What’s happening?" He encouraged, and the boy looked away, as if he was ashamed.

“Um, it’s unusual to meet someone who sees eccentric things like me.” Takashi confessed while Watanuki listened to him. “They think I'm crazy or I want to attract attention lying about creatures that doesn’t exist, and few people understand me. So…”

"You can come when you want to talk calmly. I'll always be here.

They smiled at each other and Takashi opened the door.

“Then... see you later.”


End file.
